Silky hair, radiant skin and resilient nails reflect your overall health. Proper nutrition, daily exercise and adequate rest can mean you will look as great as you feel! Science has yet to produce evidence that any vitamin or nutrient will boost the health of your hair, skin and nails. Rather, we all need to commit to healthy living.
Let us debunk some common assumptions about nail care:
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Silky hair, radiant skin and resilient nails reflect your overall health. Proper nutrition, daily exercise and adequate rest can mean you will look as great as you feel! Science has yet to produce evidence that any vitamin or nutrient will boost the health of your hair, skin and nails. Rather, we all need to commit to healthy living.
Regarding nails, we know nail type and condition are also influenced by genetics and the matrix of the nail. The matrix is found under the cuticle area and is often called the "mother of the nail." It produces the cells that make up nail plate layers and determines the length of your nail bed as well as the thickness and shape of your nails. We cannot change what the matrix dictates, but we can influence how we care for and protect our nails!
The matrix is constantly producing new cells that press up and out to make the nail plate layer. These soft round cells (like little white squishy eggs) pass under the eponychium to open and flatten out. This forces the proteins and cystines inside the cells to "glue" each layer to the next. The result is hundreds of tiny layers of dead keratin, forming a very hard surface that protects the blood vessels, nerve endings and living tissue in the nail bed.
The nail plate is hard yet porous with tiny spaces and voids throughout. The body produces oil and moisture that migrates up from the nail bed through the nail plate, keeping it tough and resilient. As we age, the body has a harder time sending these natural lubricants to our extremities.
Therefore, it is important to practice what I call the 3 C’s of healthy nail care:
CARE: BUILD HEALTHY NAILS.
This includes the client’s commitment to a regular regime of hand and foot care salon services to help control nail length and shape. It keeps the surrounding skin healthy and provides a proper level of protection to the nails—infusing conditioning oils into the nails and surrounding skin to keep these areas supple and nourished.
If nails are severely damaged, the nail professional can recommend a keratin builder to help rebuild the broken bonds of the nail structure for a fortified base that can then be coated and serviced over time. This keratin builder will be applied in service and then must be carried out at home, applied to bare natural nails twice per day for a week or two before service is resumed.
A regular schedule of professional service will provide the correct blueprint for the path to healthy nails. What starts at the nail table then must travel home for the client to continue the commitment. This includes clearing away unwanted cuticles and tissue around the nail plate by using a daily glycolic and lactic acid blend to micro-exfoliate dead dry skin around nail plate. Doing this daily will help prevent buildup of unwanted cuticle tissue around the nails and keep hangnails at bay.
CONDITION: MAINTAIN HEALTHY NAILS.
Conditioning nails and the surrounding skin daily, preferably right before bed, allows valuable lightweight and beneficial oils to penetrate through the coating on the nails as well as the tiny spaces of the nail plate itself as you sleep, filling them with oil, while pushing out damaging moisture that can break layers apart. This process is known as "plasticizing the nail" to restore resilience which will prevent against brittleness and breakage.
COAT: PROTECT HEALTHY NAILS.
Protecting nails with a coating recommended for the clients’ unique nail needs will prevent nail delamination, chipping and breakage and help seal in conditioning oils during wear. A protective coating acts as a shield against problems during the rigors of daily abuse. This could be anything from a light base and top coat for nails needing a little bit of protection to a thin layer of gel for an additional boost, or for full-blown strength and transformation, a hardy nail enhancement coating using liquid and powder acrylic. The nail professional will analyze the need and then recommend the correct level of protection required.
